Maleny mourns Rex Redding, mechanical maestro

Rex with his recreation of the first Ford.

By Max Whitten

Rex Redding had a fortunate life, but that wasn’t always the case.  He was the youngest of four brothers who lost both their parents when the boys were still quite young. As a lad, Rex certainly had it tough growing up in Dalby.

At 13 he left school and became an apprentice mechanic.  Rex had shown an extraordinary aptitude for anything mechanical, and this gift shaped much of his journey through life.

With the support of his wife Wendy, a senior nurse in Dalby, Rex ran a successful radiator repair business.  

Despite his limited formal education, they raised two boys who both became successful scientists.  Rex was a well-known character in the Dalby district, frequently assisting the local shire on all sorts of infrastructure challenges.

Rex retired to Maleny with Wendy in 1998, bringing with him a remarkable collection of first-generation generators, some original and some that were recreations.  This collection was donated to the Power Museum in Brisbane.

The first Benz … a replica built by Rex – the 1886 Benz 3 Wheeler, with dog Darcy.

Rex used a well-equipped backyard workshop to create replicas of early automobiles, beginning with an 1886 3-Wheeler Benz.  This was followed by another trifecta of early Benz, all manufactured before 1900. Ford’s first auto, an 1896 Quadricycle, scared the daylights out of Biggles when it spluttered to life (https://youtu.be/dgZ9e-0Aq10). His stable also included a replica of the 1885 Daimler motorbike.  

Rex attracted some equally brilliant friends to help solve technical problems, including Jack Warren who invented the aviation ‘black box’. In fact, Jack lent Rex a Franklin Mint Model of the 1886 Benz 3-Wheeler, his only guide for Benz #1. (see photo).  

His resourcefulness was both boundless and unique.  Barrel cleaners for 303 rifles were transformed into spokes, a crowbar was repurposed as an axle, steel pipes became mainframes, or were slit longitudinally to create wheels.  Rex delighted in providing his antique cars to flavour Maleny events such as the 2005 centenary celebrations of IGA; or the 2015 Opening of the Golf Club’s “Golf as it Began” first nine holes.

Rex’s recreations of the past are now on display at Highfields Pioneer Village for future generations to enjoy. Rex never forgot his grandchildren with his yard transformed to accommodate go-cart machines constructed to meet their skills.

He was a familiar sight walking his two dogs down the middle of Obi Lane, increasingly reluctant to relinquish the quiet country lane he had become accustomed to.  Given his lifelong mastery or anything mechanical, Rex also found it devastating to lose his drivers licence; a loss of freedom that awaits many of us. 

Rex died on April 3, 2023, and was given a fitting farewell at St George’s Anglican Church, Maleny on April 13. 

He leaves his wife Wendy, sons Matthew and Nicholas and families, along with many friends in Maleny, Dalby and beyond.